Peterborough, ON – A new Streamlined Treatment and Evaluation Pathway is now available in PRHC’s Emergency Department for patients with minor illnesses and injuries.
Beginning Monday, January 12, 2026, the online Streamlined Treatment & Evaluation Pathway (STEP) will allow patients to be pre-screened for minor illnesses and injuries, including respiratory symptoms, minor limb injuries, and urinary tract infections. Once they arrive at the hospital, patients who are eligible for STEP will be seen on a first-come, first-served basis by a dedicated physician.
Before arriving at the hospital, patients will be asked to complete a short online survey to determine their eligibility for this care pathway based on their symptoms. The STEP survey is available on the hospital’s website at prhc.on.ca by navigating to the Emergency Department page, or can be accessed directly at https://redcap.link/PRHC_STEP
Patients who complete the survey and are eligible for STEP will be provided with a confirmation message and asked to come to the Emergency Department as usual. Upon arrival, these patients will check in at the Emergency Department triage desk and show the Registration Clerk their confirmation of STEP eligibility. Once the triage nurse has verified the patient’s eligibility, they will be directed to the STEP area of the Green Zone waiting room, where they will wait to be seen by a physician.
If you complete the survey and STEP isn’t the right pathway for your care, you will be asked to come to the Emergency Department and go through the normal triage process.
The STEP system is now live. A dedicated STEP physician will be available to see patients with minor illnesses and injuries from Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis based on eligibility as determined by the survey and triage.
PRHC’s ED sees more than 75,000 visits annually – a new patient arrives in the Emergency Department every seven minutes. Pressures on the Emergency Department have continued to grow over the last decade, with rising demand for emergency services outpacing capacity as patient volumes, complexity and acuity have intensified.
“STEP is one of many initiatives our Emergency Department has taken on to help reduce wait times, hospital admissions and patient length-of-stay,” said Jessica Jackson, Director of Emergency, Critical Care, Respiratory Services and Trauma at PRHC. “We want to ensure that we are able to streamline our patients in the most efficient way possible to improve their care and experience, and with the support of leadership and staff across the hospital, we will continue to invest in these and other efforts to make innovations like STEP possible.”
About Peterborough Regional Health Centre
- With 500 inpatient beds, PRHC is a regional acute care referral centre serving one of the fastest-growing and aging populations in Canada, extending north to Haliburton, south to Northumberland, east to Quinte, and west to Durham.
- A new patient arrives at PRHC’s Emergency Department every seven minutes.
- PRHC now offers an online wait-time clock for its Emergency Department here, supporting transparency, reducing uncertainty, and empowering patients with timely information.
- PRHC is working to meet the growing demand for care in our community and region. With the support of generous donors through the PRHC Foundation, we aim to empower world-class care, closer to home; fuel innovation and bring new, lifesaving services to our region; attract the best and brightest healthcare professionals; and find solutions to critical hospital challenges. Find out more about the Campaign for PRHC here: ca/an-update-on-the-progress-of-the-70-million-campaign-for-prhc/
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For more information:
Michelene Ough | Director, Communications | mough@prhc.on.ca